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Cable Modem Basics, Manufacturers, and Vendors

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This page covers cable modem basics and lists cable modem manufacturers and vendors.

Broadband connections have become much faster thanks to the transmission of internet data using radio waves over Hybrid Fiber Coaxial (HFC) or Radio Frequency over Glass (RFoG). This service is provided using a cable modem supplied by the cable service provider for internet or broadband access.

To use cable modem internet service, you’ll need a coaxial cable connection in your home. This doesn’t require a landline telephone connection, nor do you need to pay for cable TV if you only want cable internet. Cable TV utilizes coaxial cable or a combination of fiber optic and coaxial cable.

The bandwidth of the system is approximately 750MHz. TV channel spectrum ranges from 50MHz to 550 MHz. This 500 MHz spectrum can accommodate about 83 channels, each having a 6MHz bandwidth. The spectrum above this is used for digital data transmission.

cable modem

The advantage of cable internet is that it provides faster data rates compared to DSL and dial-up modems. Cable modems typically use 64QAM for downstream data and QPSK for upstream data channels. The primary benefit of cable modems is their higher data rate compared to standard telephone systems, but this requires the availability of a cable TV system.

List of Cable Modem Manufacturers

The following table lists cable modem manufacturers along with their features and technical specifications.

Vendor or ManufacturerDescription
TP-LinkModel number TC7650-E supports DOCSIS 3.0, gigabit speeds, and uses a 1 GHz dual-core processor. It supports IPv4 and IPv6 protocols.
ARRISModel number SURFboard SB6190 supports speeds of 1.4 Gbps (downstream) and 262 Mbps (Upstream) based on subscription. It supports 32 downstream and 8 upstream channels and includes both IPv4 and IPv6 protocol stacks.
NETGEARThe model number CM400 high-speed cable modem supports a downlink speed of 343 Mbps and an uplink speed of 131 Mbps. It has 8 downstream channels and 4 upstream channels.
MotorolaModel MB7420 is ideal for gaming applications. It supports the 16 x 4 DOCSIS 3.0 standard and provides speeds of about 686 Mbps.
D-LinkModel DCM-301 supports downstream speeds of about 320 Mbps using 8 channel bonding, and upstream speeds of about 160 Mbps. It is DOCSIS compatible.
LinksysModel CM3008 supports DOCSIS 3.0 and 8/4 down and up streams respectively. It utilizes the Intel Puma 5.0 chipset.
ZoomModel number 5370 is a 16 x 4 cable modem. It supports speeds of 686 Mbps and is compatible with DOCSIS 3.0, DOCSIS 2.0, and DOCSIS 1.1.